Setting Up Business in Singapore

The pandemic has altered the way businesses operate and the way people work. It has also built a wall of uncertainty for many companies and individuals. At this point, a majority of businesses are either scaling down or sustaining themselves at the bare minimum to survive. Not many are looking to establish a new business during these tough times, which also means for those who do, there are less competition in the market!

Albeit there are still uncertainties, compared to other countries, Singapore has already reached an endemic stage where the country is progressively taking steps to open up the economy whilst maintaining minimum measures on curbing the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Singapore is also one of the first few countries to reach an 80% full vaccination rate. Overall, Singapore has managed to achieve a full year growth in GDP of 7.6% for 2021, higher than the initial prediction of 7.1% – according to Reuters.

Singapore’s 2021 – 2022 Budget

To further help boost economy growth, the government has rolled out a few initiatives to assist small businesses in their hiring needs. Let’s take a look at some of these initiatives:

1. Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG)

The PSG encourages and supports companies to adopt new IT solutions to improve their existing business processes. Companies can look to invest in sector-specific solutions for retail, logistics, food, construction, landscaping, and precision engineering industries. Other solutions that are non-sector specific covers processes such as customer management, financial management, data analytics, and inventory tracking. Eligible companies can get financial support of up to 70%.

2. Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) Grant

The MRA grant helps to support local businesses to expand overseas. This grant is applicable to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Businesses who qualify can get support of up to 70% of costs that’s split between market promotion, business development, and market set-up.

3. Enterprise Development Grant (EDG)

Companies eligible for EDG can get a maximum of 70% support to adopt new technologies, improve core competencies, and expand overseas. This grant has helped many businesses operate more efficiently and effectively through leveraging technology. Companies can invest in technologies that help automate certain functions, redesigning workflows, and to optimise resource allocation.

Why choose Singapore?

Deemed the global hub for business, Singapore is situated in an ideal location with one of the most busiest ports in the world – bringing in business from all corners of the world. Besides that, Singapore has one of the most competitive tax systems as well that goes as low as 17% with partial exemption for eligible businesses.

Aside from that, Singapore has one of the best infrastructures, healthcare, and low crime rate in the world. Starting a business in Singapore is also easy as there are low barriers to setting it up. If you’re planning to expand your business overseas, the Free Trade Agreements that Singapore has with many other countries would be extremely beneficial for businesses.

With every business, it is also important to hire the right people and talent for your company. Singapore has one of the best education systems in the world, equipping fresh graduates with the necessary skills, mindset, and capabilities to take on the work sector. Hiring in Singapore is a breeze due to the multiple programmes available for companies to leverage on interns and fresh grads.

Despite all these, it is still a challenge starting a business in Singapore from scratch. With a multitude of core functions and processes to focus on, not many businesses are prepared enough to sustain. However, there are external solutions that can assist new businesses to not only establish their foothold faster but also assist them to grow. That is why many new businesses outsource their HR processes to agencies in Singapore.

Talent Spot is the leading HR agency in Singapore with a holistic solution that covers a myriad of HR functions from sourcing, hiring, onboarding, payroll, contract staffing, and more. Our team consists of niche HR and recruitment specialists that are trained to cater to the needs of your business and industry. Our intention is to alleviate the pain points of managing an entire HR department so that you can better allocate resources to focus on other core business competencies.

Take that first step towards establishing your business in partnership with Talent Spot. Speak to us here!